Tips for Creating Original and Compelling Healthcare Content

Healthcare companies and retailers can no longer rely on traditional advertising and in-store promotions to market their goods and services. Today, people turn to the internet for information. If people can’t find your products and services online, you may as well be invisible. This is why healthcare brands should embrace content marketing. The Importance of Content Marketing for the Healthcare Sector Today, around 83 percent of healthcare organizations are using content marketing to drive growth. When researching their healthcare options, consumers are seeking out valuable content in the form of blog posts, ebooks, videos, images, infographics, email newsletters, social media posts, and more. When you provide the right content at the right time, you strengthen your credibility and are more likely to gain loyal customers. This trust-building approach is backed up by research. According to TMG Custom Media, around 78 percent of consumers believe that companies that offer original content are interested in building long-lasting relationships with their customers2. But in order to reap the benefits of content marketing, you need to get it right. Best Practices for Creating Healthcare Content Focus on High-Quality, In-Depth Content If you want to reach more potential customers online, make sure some of your content is long-form. In one study, the average Google first page result contained 1,890 words. Consumers also want specific answers. Around 66 percent of all internet users look online for information about a specific medical problem. Create content that addresses specific health issues, and link to sources that support your content. Consider writing an ebook, whitepaper, or reference guide. Start a Company Blog Constant blog content is one of the best ways to improve your search engine rankings, drive web traffic, and build your credibility. Focus on topics that your target audience cares about and you’ll become a go-to source for healthcare information. Produce More Video Content According to Becker’s Hospital Review in an article on healthcare marketing trends for 2018, health-related video content is in demand. By 2019, videos will account for around 85 percent of all internet traffic in the US. Videos are engaging, easy to consume, and highly shareable. Use them to share expert health information, or tell staff stories. Use the Right Tone Most people aren’t interested in marketing buzzwords like â€Å"patient-centric† or â€Å"state-of-the-art.† Instead of using complicated medical terms, use conversational, compassionate, jargon-free language. Don’t Forget Email According to Twitter research, 74 percent of marketers consider email as the most effective distribution channel for new content. Most people need time to make a healthcare decision, so consider distributing an email newsletter to keep people engaged with your brand. Optimize for Local Search Around 47 percent of internet users search online for information about doctors or other health professionals. If you have a local practice, make sure your content includes keywords related to your location to maximize your online visibility. Get Social Find out where healthcare conversations are happening on social platforms, get involved, and promote your content. Facebook is still the most popular social media channel, followed by Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Optimize for Mobile Most US adults now own a smartphone, and Google Search now prioritizes mobile-friendly websites, so you must optimize your healthcare content for mobile devices. Find out how to make your content mobile-friendly. Be Consistent According to HubSpot, it takes about six months of posting relevant content on a weekly basis to impact your web traffic. Start using an editorial calendar to ensure you deliver regular, useful content to your target audience. Healthcare Content Ideas Stories. Your staff, patients, and the history of your organization all provide useful material to help humanize your brand. Lifestyle content. Tackle topics related to patient health and lifestyle choices. Opinion pieces. Give your stance on current news stories and trends in your industry. New data and surveys. Use your own data, source data from the internet, or survey your existing customers as a springboard for new content. Aftercare content. The period after an appointment or procedure is often neglected by content marketers, but it provides a broad range of content opportunities. Condition-specific information. You don’t have to cover every topic, but you can discuss common procedures and conditions. Billing information. Most patients read billing statements, so don’t miss this opportunity to refer customers to your website and social media channels for more information. Wrapping Up The wealth of healthcare information now available online means every healthcare brand must fight for attention. However, with access to various content formats and online distribution channels, it’s also a great opportunity for brands to reach new customers with content. If you’re a healthcare company looking to leverage the power of content marketing, consider hiring freelance health medicine writers. Follow these recommendations and above all, offer content that supports and informs potential customers. Content marketing requires patience, but if you’re willing to invest in it, you’ll increase your web traffic, leads, and ultimately sales.

Free Essays on Magpiety

The main idea of my essay is that the speaker in the poem â€Å"Magpiety† by Philip Levine has realized that half of his life has passed, yet he has not yet lived it. A part of my argument is that he feels that he has wasted half of his life because he is sixty-four looking back on thirty-two and wondering why he was rushing. One of the biggest problems that I had at this point in the writing process was that at first, I didn’t have enough evidence to support my thoughts. However, after revising several times, I found the evidence needed. Another problem I had was relating different sections in the poem to one another. There were many lines in the poem that could be interpreted in many different ways and I had to sift through and pick the best suited ones for my topic of argument. The point that I feel I have made successfully is that the man in the poem has not lived life to the fullest. The man noticed that his life was moving fast, and he tried to slow down but had an anxiety attack of some sort. Though we do not necessarily know what it is about, it can be interpreted in many different ways. The question that I would like answered from the reader is what they think about my use of evidence. As I said before, I had trouble coming up with evidence to support my thoughts, while strongly abiding to them. If I was going to start revising, I would focus on the magpie a little bit more, I would consider in depth how the last lines of the poem are significant, and I would go more into how the man hasn’t lived his life to the fullest.... Free Essays on Magpiety Free Essays on Magpiety The main idea of my essay is that the speaker in the poem â€Å"Magpiety† by Philip Levine has realized that half of his life has passed, yet he has not yet lived it. A part of my argument is that he feels that he has wasted half of his life because he is sixty-four looking back on thirty-two and wondering why he was rushing. One of the biggest problems that I had at this point in the writing process was that at first, I didn’t have enough evidence to support my thoughts. However, after revising several times, I found the evidence needed. Another problem I had was relating different sections in the poem to one another. There were many lines in the poem that could be interpreted in many different ways and I had to sift through and pick the best suited ones for my topic of argument. The point that I feel I have made successfully is that the man in the poem has not lived life to the fullest. The man noticed that his life was moving fast, and he tried to slow down but had an anxiety attack of some sort. Though we do not necessarily know what it is about, it can be interpreted in many different ways. The question that I would like answered from the reader is what they think about my use of evidence. As I said before, I had trouble coming up with evidence to support my thoughts, while strongly abiding to them. If I was going to start revising, I would focus on the magpie a little bit more, I would consider in depth how the last lines of the poem are significant, and I would go more into how the man hasn’t lived his life to the fullest....

HR Analisys Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

HR Analisys - Essay Example Similarly, it can affect the financial performance of this organization; however, this might vary from one state to the next depending on the HR practices that Organizations embraces in such states (Bauernberger, 2007). It is vital to recognize that the decisions that the company makes on who to hire, what to pay, what training to offer, how employees’ performance is appraised, and other credible HR provisions directly affect employees’ motivation and ability to provide goods and services that customers value. Consequently, Organizations, as an MNC, must consider such factors through the HR department so as to realize credible organizational performance. Generally, HR manager’s roles in this MNC might eventually affect its prosperity, market relevance, and financial aspects. The strategic HRM management practices chosen in this context incorporate recruitment, selection, training and development, compensation, employee relations, and performance management (Colli ns 5). However, three of them have been discerned in diverse ways so as to understand the novel HRM concepts that Organizations can establish and implement so as to remain relevant in the HR management arenas. They have been intertwined so as to emerge with a concrete management provisions that Organizations, through its newly managed HR department, should establish, implement and embrace to benefit the company. Organizations should implement various HRM management practices in order to remain relevant in the global market. Due to its production and marketing capacity, the organization demands novel HRM practices in the context of HR planning, recruitment of employees, selection criteria, training and development provisions, compensation plans, as well as performance management. Another credible provision is the establishment and ratification of diversity provisions within the Organizations’ workforce. Cultural diversity is increasingly being a

Software SLP Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Software SLP - Assignment Example A login based access to the information resources, upload and download provisions, intuitive interface and concurrent information are some important functional requirements set as the core and most important milestones for the development of BSITM website. Dr Robert and Kim-Phuon (2005) obserseves that â€Å"functional requirements are those requirements that identify and prioritize the functions that users want on the site.† The website will have independent sections in order to meet the content requirements of students, instructors and guardians. A separate section will provide a blog and messaging functionalities to serve as a community center for all three major user groups. The home page will have most important contents including news and result sections. Schedules, handouts, assignments, results will serve as the essential contents of the students’ section. Similarly, the instructor section will enable uploads and download provisions whereas the guardians’ section will contain results and personalize reports on children. In order to meet these goals following list of contents and functional requirements is

Effects of Groupthink in an Organisation

Effects of Groupthink in an Organisation Introduction The paper aims to assess the relationship between groupthink and team performance. First, it will review the conceptualisations of groupthink to analyse the effects of groupthink in organisations, focusing how it is formed and its manifestation in organizational performance, especially in group decision making. Secondly, my study will explain whether or not groupthink affects organisational performance through an analysis of the existent theory by Irving. L. Janis and the empirical studies conducted to examine the groupthink and group performance link. Finally, my paper shows some recommendations which reduce negative impacts of groupthink in workplace. Within my study, I also will support ideas by giving implications about groupthink in organisations in the light of theory. In the past several decades, there has been a substantial increase in emphasis on organisation behaviour literature, focusing on group decision making (Branstatter et al, 1982; Kerr and Tindale, 2004). The utilisation of group decision making, conducted in different type of tasks, has been credited with various benefits including improved productivity and enhancement of the quality of work life (Troopman, 1980). However, many researchers also review a potential problem that occurs within groups and that can dramatically hinder group effectiveness from their performance. This disease can be referred to as ‘groupthink’, which is presented the first time in 1972 by Irving L. Janis. The main point of theory on which Janis has been suggested is that the poor decisions of group suffering from groupthink derive from a strong concurrence-seeking tendency that suppresses collective decision-making processes, and leads to fiascos (Janis, 1972). Based on his achievement, a large bo dy of research has shown a conscious awareness of the psychological phenomenon of groupthink as well as formulates some simple strategies to avoid it. A review of groupthink According to Janis (1972), groupthink is described as a â€Å"mode of thinking that people engage in when they are deeply involved in a cohesive in-group, when the members’ striving for unanimity override their motivation to realistically appraise alternative course of action† (1972, p.9). Based on this theory, it is suspected that groupthink occurs when group members’ motivation for unanimity and agreement such as consensus overrules their motivation to evaluate carefully benefits of decisions as well as expression of deviant or minority opinions (Janis, 1972; Robbins and Judge, 2013). Many studies have evidenced that groups and teams can develop a high level of cohesiveness which tends to result in better performance. However, a considerable disadvantage of highly cohesive groups is that their decision making ability can be drastically restricted by Janis’s groupthink hypothesis. Indeed, strong cohesive groups, where group members are friendly and respec tful of other’s opinions, can contribute to faulty decisions and a policy fiasco when such groups are immersed in poor decision making process under in-group pressures (Eaton, 2001). With the same view, in other words, Fincham and Rhodes (1999) argued that highly cohesive groups can create the pressures of conformity that reduce reflexivity, impeding members’ judgement and their ability to reach a correct decision. From this point, it is clearly seen that each member of a group finds it comfortable to be in agreement, following a positive part of the group, rather than to be an opposing force, even if this factor is potential to enhance the efficiency of the group’s decisions. This reveals a reality that individuals who have different opinions from that of the dominant majority have a tendency to withhold or modify their true feelings and beliefs, which leads to distort the decision making process (Robbins and Judge, 2013). In addition, Knights et al (2007) beli eved that groupthink can cause a disadvantage when learning activities stopped as any further development was largely stagnated by a consensus that was more based upon a withdrawal of respect than upon a useful critical insight to assessment of different information and alternative options. Therefore, when the group is attacked by groupthink, the problems are usually discussed and examined in an uncertain way, leaving many possible solutions and useful ideas (Knights et al, 2007). One of the clearest examples of groupthink which can be considered is the the explosion of the NASA Shuttle Challenger, 73 seconds after it launched in January 1986, killing seven astronauts. The disasters could have been easily prevented if the NASA team noticed the concerns from engineers on the readiness and safety of the Shuttle’s structure before it were launched (Moorhead et al, 1991). It could be concluded that groupthink impede the voices of members of the group who have their own opinions b ut are marginalised, and maintain an illusion of group unanimity, which may invalidate team performance and contribute in creating fiascos (Knights et al, 2007). In addition, many researchers studied that the effectiveness of directive leadership is also one of the factors related to groupthink (Flowers, 1977; Mullen et al, 1994). They claimed that directive leadership has a weak connection with information being considered by the group, the discouragement of dissent, fewer solutions being found and more self-censorship by members (Flowers, 1977; Leana, 1985; Moorhead and Montanari, 1986). Based on previous studies, Moorhead et al (1998) believed that individuals’ opinions may be prevented from group interaction if there appears a strong leadership and group members just only follow their leaders without sufficient critical evaluation. For example, if the leader of the group suggests unethical ideas, and the group cannot control the rules to prescribe ethical behaviour, poor decision may be shaped (Sims, 1992). Similarly, Huczynski and Buchanan (2013) concluded that if the group leaders consider their position from the beginning and ap pear to have a strong preference for a particular goal, the groups tend to support their leader’s idea and do not have a chance to suggest alternative information or solutions. Research on symptoms of groupthink Groupthink, in most of viewpoints, is considered as a threat of organization. Fortunately, Janis (1972, 1982) described eight symptoms categorised in three types of characteristics which were experienced from the fiascos and serve as the powerful tool for recognising the existence of groupthink. They are: overestimation of the group (illusion of invulnerability; belief in inherent morality), closed-mindedness (collective rationalisations, stereotyped images of out-groups), and pressure towards uniformity (self-censorship, illusion of unanimity, direct pressures on dissenters, self-appointed mindguards) (Janis, 1972; Hart, 1991). These symptoms, according to Janis (1972), are considered as a collection of a concurrence-seeking tendency that can fade group decision making process and lead to fiascos, and even disasters. In his research, concurrence-seeking plays a vital role in collective decision making process; but, it will become excessive when it occurs too early in a limited acces s. In addition, Hart (1991) pointed that the signal of excessive concurrence-seeking can be derived from the pressures toward uniformity, and concurrence-seeking takes places in the context of misguide policy from the other two types of characteristics. However, According to Choi and Kim (1999), not all symptoms of groupthink tend to be associated with the others. Their study evidenced that pressure on dissenters, collective rationalisations, and self-censorship tend to be positively associated with each other but negatively associated with the belief in the illusion of invulnerability, the group’s inherent morality, and the illusion of unanimity. From that point, they also suggested that groupthink symptoms reflect two different processes that may occur in collective decision making: the positive correlations between the illusions of invulnerability and unanimity with the belief in the group morality, contrary to the emergence of mindguards, self-censorship, pressure on diss enters, and stereotypes of outgroups. Similarly, Park (2000) examined symptoms of groupthink based on the groupthink model’s Janis and went to a conclusion that the symptom groupings tend to produce negative correlations across the divergent processes. This strengthens for the argument of Longley and Pruit (1980) that the symptoms of groupthink have a strong connection with defective decision making process which would qualify as high quality. How to avoid groupthink It is clearly seen that groupthink is an invisible barrier that causes negative effects on group decision making process and lead to serious consequences. However, Janis’s achievement on groupthink theory has paved the way for researchers finding methods to avoid this phenomenon. Macleod (2011) suggested that it is important for managers to foster group cohesiveness along with a shared sense of professional solidarity. At the same time, it is also important to create an impartial comfort zone in which each member of a group is encouraged to have an active voice in the exchange of ideas and in the evaluation of options. Moreover, relevant outside input should be welcomed as a means of providing diverse information and broadening the extent of collaboration. Conclusion In conclusion, a large body of research has examined the negative impacts of groupthink to organisation, focusing on group decision making. All of them are reviewed and examined meticulously from the Janis’s groupthink hypothesis, which claimed that groupthink is clearly seen as an enemy of creativity, bringing threats and major blunders (Simone, 2008). Indeed, groupthink leads to group decision making failures which come from the highly cohesive groups and the strong directive leadership (Flower, 1977; Leana, 1985; Hart, 1991). Developed from this point, before groupthink becomes a potential pitfall in group decision making, controlled attempts to understand its symptoms are not only desirable but highly necessary. If people can do that, the groupthink framework can be applied effectively to analyse defective decision processes and propose recommendations to avoid groupthink in work organisations. Therefore, it is necessary to have more research on the potential threats to ef fective group decision making caused by groupthink to get deeper insight into this phenomenon as well as improve the further ideas and continuous in-depth research for groups.

Failed Amendment: Protecting Slavery Essay

In 1861, an Amendment was proposed to protect the practice of slavery, known as the Corwin Amendment.. It would make it so not amendments could be made to effect the use of slavery. This is the only proposed Amendment that has the signature of the President, to not be ratified. The President’s signature is considered unnecessary due to the face the constitutional provision that on the concurrence of two-thirds of both Houses of Congress the proposal shall be submitted to the States for ratification. Two states approved this proposal, Ohio and Illinois. It is believed that Maryland also ratified the Corwin Amendment, but due to military conflict during the Civil War it was never official. I believe that it was never ratified for many reasons but the main was because many state did not agree with slavery at the time, and they did not want to â€Å"protect† it with an amendment, they also saw that change was coming and if it was ratified, change could not happen. Technically the Corwin Amendment is still â€Å"live† and it could still be ratified, although the 13th Amendment put an end to slavery. If the 13th Amendment did not make slavery illegal, it still not be ratified, especially today. People’s views on equal rights, and racism have changed drastically, and if the Corwin Amendment was proposed today people would be disgusted. I believe that is the Corwin Amendment was even suggest America would become a very different place. Many citizens would change their views on the government and protest and riots would break out.

Pakistan’s Banking Sector Current Situation And Critical Issues

Pakistan’s banking sector reforms which were initiated in the early 1990s have transformed the sector into an efficient, sound and strong banking system. The most recent comprehensive assessment carried out jointly by the World Bank and the IMF in 2004 came to the following conclusion: â€Å" for reaching reforms have resulted in a more efficient and competitive financial system In particular, the predominantly state-owned banking system has been transformed into one that is predominantly under the control of the private sector. The legislative framework and the State Bank of Pakistan’s supervisory capacity have been improved substantially. As a result, the financial sector is sounder and exhibits an increased resilience to shocks. † The major changes that have occurred in the banking sector during the last decade or so can be summarized as follows: a) 80 percent of the banking assets are held by the private sector banks and the privatization of nationalized commercial banks has brought about a culture of professionalism and service orientation in place of bureaucracy and apathy. ) The banks that were losing money due to inefficiencies, waste and limited product range have become highly profitable business. These profits are, however, being used to strengthen the capital base of the banks rather than paying out to the shareholders. The minimum capital requirements have been raised from Rs. 500 million to Rs. 6 billion over an extended period in a phased manner. The consolidation of the banking sector into fewer but stronger banks will lead to better management of risk. c) The banks that were burdened with the non-performing and defaulted loans have cleared up their balance sheets in an open transparent, cross-the-board manner. Contrary to the popular myth the main beneficiaries of the wirite-offs of the old outstanding and unrecoverable loans have been from almost 25 percent to 6. 7 percent by Dec. 2005. Small individual borrowers the ratio of non-performing loans of the Commercial Banks to total advances has declined. d) The quality of new assets has improved as stringent measures are taken to appraise new loans, and assure the underlying securities. Online Credit Information Bureau reports provide updated information to the banks about the credit history and track record of the borrowers. Loan approvals on political considerations have become passe. Non-performing loans account for less than 3 percent of all new loans disbursed since 1997. e) The human resources base of the banks has been substantially upgraded by the adoption of the principles of merit and performance throughout the industry. Recruitment is done through a highly competitive process and promotions and compensation are linked to training, skills and high performance. The banks now routinely employ MBAs, M. Coms, Chartered Accountants, IT graduates, economists and other highly educated persons rather than Clerical and Non Clerical Workers. The banking industry has become the preferred choice of profession among the young graduates. f) Banking Technology that was almost non-existent in Pakistan until a few years ago is revolutionizing the customer services and access on-line banking, Internet banking, ATMs, mobile phone banking and other modes of delivery have made it possible to provide convenience to the customers while reducing the transaction costs to the banks. Credit Cards, Debit Cards, Smart Cards etc. are a thriving and expanding business in Pakistan. Once the RTGS is put in place the payment system in Pakistan. Would enter a new phase of modernization. ) Competition among the banks has forced them to move away from the traditional limited product range of credit to the government and the public sector enterprises, trade financing, big name corporate loans, and credit to multinationals to an ever-expanding menu of products and services. The borrower base of the banks has expanded four fold in the last six years as the banks have diversified into agriculture, SMEs, Consumers financing, mortgages, etc. The middle class that could not afford to buy cars or apartments as they did not have the financial strength for cash purchases are the biggest beneficiaries of these new products and services. ) Along with strong regulation, supervision and enforcement capacity of the State Bank of Pakistan a number of measures have been taken to put best corporate governance practices in the banking system. ‘Fit and proper’ criteria have been prescribed for the Chief Executives, members of the Boards of Directors, and top management positions. Accounting and audit standards have been brought to the International Accounting Standards (IAS) and the International Audit Codes. External audit firms are rated according to their performance and track record and those falling short of the acceptable standards are debarred from auditing the banks. These practices were put in place in Pakistan long before the scandals of Enercon, World Call and Pramalat had shaken the corporate world. i) The foreign exchange market that was highly regulated through a system of direct exchange controls over suppliers and users of foreign exchange has been liberalized and all purchases and sales take place through an active and vibrant inter-bank exchange market. All restrictions have been removed with full current account convertibility and partial capital account convertibility. Foreign investors can now bring in and take back their capital, remit profits, dividends and fees without any prior removal and directly through their banks. Similarly, foreign portfolio investors can also enter and exit the market at their own discretion. The main lesson learnt from the last decade suggest that financial sector functions effectively and efficiently only if the macroeconomics situation is favorable and stable. The need to maintain macroeconomic stability will thus remain paramount in the years to come. The agenda for further reforms in the financial sector is still quite formidable and the challenges to spread the benefits of financial liberalization among the middle and low income households and small and medium farms and enterprises are still enormous. There are several areas of dissatisfaction with the banking sector that need to be addressed. The most serious complaint against the banking system in Pakistan today is that the depositors are not getting adequate return on their bank deposits. The difference between the monthly weighted average rates of lending and deposits is taken as an indicator of the spreads earned by the banks. It is true that these spreads have widened in the recent months land this phenomenon has caused resentment among those whose only source of income is their returns from bank deposits. But it is important to examine the facts and their form judgments The monthly comparisons are meaningless because PLS deposit rates are changed every six months, while the lending rates are continuously adjusting because they are automatically linked to T-bills or KIBOR rates. During the last eight months the weighted average deposit rate has risen from 1. 6 percent in July – Feb, 2005 to 3. 9 percent in July – Feb, 2006. This trend reflects that the return on the new deposits mobilized is much higher than what the average rate indicates. The old deposits are earning much lower rate because they were lodged at the time when the overall structure of interest rates had come down significantly. This lag is adjustment between the deposit and lending rates is due to the costs incurred by the depositor in shifting deposits from one bank to the other. The additional deposits mobilized in the last twelve months amounted to Rs. 382 billion i. e. a growth rate of 16. 8 percent. This growth rate took place despite deceleration in the volume of Resident Foreign deposit accounts. So if the deposit rates were unattractive then this high growth rate in deposits mobilized by the banks appears to be puzzling. The reason for this high growth is that the fresh deposits were fetching an average return of 6. 2 percent in March, 2006 compared to 3. 5 percent in July, 2005 – rise of 270 basis points in nine months. In the coming months the average rate is likely to move further upwards bringing them to positive real interest rates. Why have the profits of the banks risen so sharply in the last few years? There are several reasons that need to be understood: First, the drag of non-performing loans has been eased considerably reducing the need for setting aside the provisions for loan losses. As these provisions were made at the expense of the profits the banks are now reaping the benefits of building up substantial provisions and taking the hit on their profits in the past. Second, the corporate income tax rate on banks’ profits has gradually come down from 58 percent to 38 percent saving on their tax deductions. These savings not only get translated in to higher profits but also act as incentives for better performance because the tax rate no longer acts as a penalty. Third, the diversification of the banks assets into new and so far underserved segments such as agriculture, mortgage, auto, SMEs, Consumer and Credit Cards have raised their net interest margins. As competition has become quite tough in the corporate segment the margins on corporate loans have been squeezed considerably. But the spreads earned in these new segments are quite attractive. Thus a large part of the profits originate from lending to these underserved segments of the population. This is a Win- Win situation as small farmers, small businesses and middle class consumers, who had so far been denied access to bank credit, are able to get financing the banks are able to earn higher spreads. Fourth, there has been a shift in the maturing profile of both the banks’ deposits and banks’ loans. Half of the total deposits are now placed for short term duration earning negligible rates of return compared to the past where the distribution of deposits were concentrated in medium to long duration earning much higher returns. On the assets side, more of the bank loans are being disbursed for fixed investment purposes. These have long maturity structure and pay higher interest rates in double digits. This shift in the composition of deposits and advances has helped earn the banks a higher spread boosting their profitability. As the majority of the banks are operating in the private sector they will remain guided by the bottom line considerations i. e. the profits. Consolidation and market competition will act as a deterrent on abnormal profits but it is the responsibility of the regulator to ensure that these profits are not made by taking excessive risk with the depositors’ money or by banks indulging in collusive practices. The regulator has to ensure that the access to credit is further broadened and small farming households, small and medium businesses and middle classes are able to meet their legitimate credit needs. At the same time the regulator has to take stringent action against those banks found guilty of anti-competitive or collusive practices. Another popular indictment against the banking sector is that they are financing speculative activities such as stock market trading, real estate, commodities, auto etc. The facts do not support this indictment. Direct and indirect exposure by banks in stock market equities has been limited to 20 percent of their capital i. e. the maximum amount all the banks can collectively provide for this activity is only 40 billion. The outstanding stock of bank advances in March, 2006 stood at Rs. 2063 billion. Thus the bank credit allocated for stock market equity trading is less than 2 percent of the total advances of the banking system. If we further assume that some amounts are diverted from consumer loans or corporate loans also the exposure of the banks may double to as much as 4 percent but the securities and collaterals against the diverted loans may not necessarily be the scrips themselves. Real estate financing by banks is restricted to mortgage loans only and the purchase of plots cannot be financed by the banks. Mortgage loans can be disbursed in installments after physical verification of the various phases of construction. The total disbursements of loans for mortgage amounted to Rs. 11. 4 billion in FY 05. Commodity financing and its prevailing rates are not attractive for the borrowers as there has been net retirement of commodity loans in the first nine months of the current fiscal year. The regulatory environment for the banks to indulge in lending for speculative purposes is not very propitious. The State Bank of Pakistan supervisors are not only vigilant in their on-site inspection but they monitor the banks on a continuous basis and can detect irregularities and violations fairly quickly. The more deterrent effect of strong oversight by the supervisors is enough to discourage such activities. The penalties imposed by the supervisors on recalcitrant banks are quite severe.